Be Mine
by TVjas
Summary: Kate wants to share a perfect Valentine's Day with Rick, but things don't go quite like she envisioned. This was written before 'Reality Star Struck' so no spoilers. One-shot.


Kate hurriedly threw the chicken and au gratin potatoes into the oven and looked at the clock again. Not even a minute had gone by since the last time she checked it. She set the timer for an hour and took a deep breath. Thank God she had made everything up last night so she could just throw it in the oven this evening.

She was so nervous. Why was she so nervous? She raked her hand through her hair as she made her way to her bathroom to take a quick shower. She turned on the shower to let it warm up as she stripped off her clothes.

Kate stuck her hand in the shower stream to test the temperature. It was only lukewarm, but she climbed in anyway. It took forever for the hot water to find its way to the shower head, but she knew it would soon be scalding. She just stood under the water letting it wash the long day away.

She had wanted so badly to get out of the precinct early. Well, she had hoped to leave at 5 which was officially the end of her shift, but it was rare for her to leave that early. Their case hadn't been going well. Early on they thought they knew who the murderer was, but when he alibied out there were no other good suspects. They had continued to run down leads, but everything was a dead end.

Castle had left early saying he had errands to run. Without Castle by her side, Beckett allowed herself to get more and more frustrated - frustrated with the case, frustrated with not being able to leave early, and frustrated that Castle wasn't there to lighten her mood. They finally left at 6 when there was nothing else they could do but wait for the lab tests.

The water was suddenly scorching and she adjusted the knobs to make it bearable. She quickly washed off as she thought about the beginning of her day.

She had been totally engrossed in her paperwork when something had made her look up. Castle was exiting the elevator. Kate's heart fluttered and a small smile graced her lips. Castle's eyes met hers, and his face split into a huge grin.

"Good morning, Beckett," he said cheerily as he arrived at her desk.

"Whatcha got in the box?" Beckett squinted curiously at the huge, white box.

Castle's eyes twinkled mischievously. "Oh, I have something for you." He set the box on Kate's desk and opened the lid just enough to pull out something wrapped in pink tissue paper. It was way too small to have been in such a big box.

Beckett's brow furrowed. They were still trying to keep their relationship under wraps so why would Castle bring a gift to the precinct? She looked up at him, an unmistakable question in her eyes.

"You'll never know what it is if you don't open it, Beckett." Castle said, not even trying to disguise his amusement.

Kate gingerly unwrapped it. She pressed her lips together trying to suppress her smile. It was a cookie, a heart-shaped sugar cookie with pink icing. On top was a small lavender candy heart that said 'Be Mine'.

"Happy Valentine's Day," Castle said softly, his voice full of tenderness.

Beckett's heart was thumping in her chest. It was so full of love for this sappy guy who would do anything to brighten her day.

"Yo, whatcha got there, Beckett?" Esposito chimed in before she could even say anything.

Kate rolled her eyes and turned towards her boys who were obviously more interested in what she and Castle were doing than they were in their jobs. "It's a cookie, Espo."

"Don't worry. I got enough for everyone," Castle said hoisting up the box for them to see. He had 3 dozen cookies, but Kate's was the only one with a candy heart on it. He carried the box into the break room, the boys trailing behind like puppies.

* * *

Kate carefully did her makeup then slid into the black dress that she had purchased just for this occasion. She decided to put her hair up. Her teeth caught her bottom lip as she checked the mirror. Did Castle even like her hair up? It was their first Valentine's Day together as a couple, and she just wanted everything to be perfect.

Kate knew why she was so nervous. She felt guilty because she made such a mess of Christmas. Castle loved holidays, and Christmas was his favorite holiday. He wanted nothing more than to share his favorite holiday with her, and what had she done? She demanded that there be no gifts, and then she lied to him about having to work. She had sucked the joy out of Christmas for him. He had every right to be furious with her when he found out that she had lied. She knew she had hurt him, but he wasn't angry. He was understanding as always. Even though she showed up late on Christmas Eve, Castle was thrilled and welcomed her eagerly. Because of him she had had the best Christmas since her mother's death. Now she wanted to give him the best Valentine's Day ever.

Kate's reverie was interrupted by a knock at the door. She took a deep breath and nervously smoothed her hands over her dress before swinging the door open.

Castle's heart jumped into his throat when he caught his first glimpse of her. His mouth opened slightly as he stared at her seemingly in awe. Her black dress hugged her curves deliciously. The only embellishment was the one beaded strap over her right shoulder. The other shoulder was bare and seemed to be inviting his lips to lay a trail of kisses there. Her upswept hair looked elegant and her eyes were bright, but the best thing was the dazzling grin that she bestowed upon him. Castle swallowed audibly as he drank her in marveling that this magnificent creature would even give him a second glance.

"You're gorgeous, Kate," he finally managed to say, his voice throaty with emotion. He seemed to be rooted to the floor.

"You're not so bad yourself," Kate replied still grinning, a blush rising in her cheeks. "Would you like to come in?" she offered. It was weirdly awkward – almost like a first date.

Castle finally seemed to come out of his trance. His blue eyes sparkled as he smiled at her. "These are for you," he said holding out a bouquet of red roses to her. "I wish they were as beautiful as you."

"Oh, Castle, they _are_ beautiful," Kate exclaimed as she took them from him. Rick leaned in and kissed her. It was a short hello kiss, but there was still a spark between them. Kate tried to seem nonchalant, but butterflies took over her stomach as soon as she saw Castle. He was wearing an exquisite dark suit with a dark red button down and a solid purple tie. He was so handsome, but it was always his eyes that drew her in. Those beautiful, blue, expressive eyes that tonight were brimming with love.

"I was also able to get a hold of a 2003 Dom Perignon," Castle said holding up the bottle for her to see as they made their way to the kitchen. "That was really a great year."

"Why don't you open the wine, and I'll check on dinner." Beckett set the roses on the island then pulled open the oven door.

"Oh no," Kate cried. "The oven quit working!"

Castle started walking around the island to take a look. Beckett bent down to take the potatoes out of the oven. Suddenly the potatoes slipped out of her grasp. Castle lurched forward to grab them as Kate did the same. Their heads collided with a thud, and they both staggered backwards as the potatoes hit the floor. There was an explosion of glass, potatoes, and liquid.

Kate was off balance after their collision and wildly grabbed for the island to prevent herself from falling. Instead, her flailing arm connected with the rose vase which went crashing to the floor – another explosion of glass, water, and roses. Kate stood there stunned and looked at Castle with tears brimming in her eyes. Castle reached for her wanting to comfort her, but she pulled away and went to the closet to get a broom and dustpan.

When she returned Castle took a hold of the broom and dustpan. "I'll clean this up. You need to clean the spots off your dress before they set in." Castle nodded towards her dress. Kate looked down. There were spots and pieces of potato all over her dress and Castle's suit as well.

Kate gave up the broom and ran to her bedroom. Castle took off his suit coat and rolled up his sleeves as he scanned the scene before him. It looked like something that CSU should be called in to investigate and take samples. It was amazing how far and high the potatoes and glass had flown. Castle quickly started cleaning up.

Tears were streaming down Kate's cheeks as she tried to get the stains out of her dress using plain water since she didn't have any club soda. This night was supposed to be perfect, and it was ruined. There was no way to get their evening back on track now.

Castle finally finished cleaning the kitchen. He found another vase for the roses and tried to arrange them as perfectly as they were before. He was surprised Kate had not emerged from her bedroom. This was a Valentine's Day they wouldn't soon forget, he thought almost chuckling.

He went to Beckett's bedroom and not seeing her there continued into the bathroom. Kate was sitting on the edge of the tub in her black, lacy underwear, her dress hanging on a hanger on the back of the door. The tracks of dried tears were visible on her face. She looked up at Castle with forlorn eyes like she had lost her best friend.

"Kate," he said with concern in his eyes. "Hey, everything is OK." His calm, soothing voice helped break through Kate's despair. He put his arms around her and pulled her up and into his embrace. He had removed his tie and unbuttoned the top of his shirt when he started sweating while he was sweeping and mopping the kitchen, and now he could feel the warmth of her skin through his shirt.

"I wanted this to be perfect for you," she said with an uncharacteristic whine as she buried her face into Castle's shoulder.

Castle smiled, "I'm here with you. How could it be more perfect than that?" Kate didn't respond so Castle continued, "After all, the boys aren't here to interrupt us, my mother won't be flitting in to disturb us, and we don't have to pretend we're not in a relationship. I'd say it's shaping up to be a great evening." He could actually feel her smile into his shirt.

Castle tilted her head up so he could kiss her. He gave her a tender, lingering kiss then pulled back slightly so he could read her eyes. He smiled down on her, and she smiled back realizing that he was right. They had lived through a lot worse things than a ruined dinner. They were here with each other, and really what more did they need on Valentine's Day?

He leaned in to kiss her again, but this time their passion soon escalated. As they kissed, Kate started working on the buttons to Rick's shirt. Once his shirt was open, her fingers traveled over the new expanse of skin available to her. Being able to touch him ignited a fire in her. Her fingers spread wide as her hands roamed from his chest across his sides and onto his back. Her hands tried to have contact with as much skin as possible as she dropped a trail of kisses down his neck. Castle's breath hitched from what those kisses were doing to him. He worked on getting his shirt off as he propelled them toward her bed. It wasn't long before the rest of their clothes were on the floor. Castle always marveled at her beautiful body. His fingers and lips were soon eagerly exploring it. They were both well versed in how to bring pleasure to the other, and they spent the next half hour doing just that.

"Thank you," Kate breathed as she snuggled into Castle. She rested her head on his shoulder. Her leg was thrown over his thigh, and her arm rested on his chest, fingers idly playing with his sparse chest hair. "I feel so incredibly relaxed now. I was so stressed out about wanting to make tonight perfect and working on that frustrating case. I didn't even realize how tense I was."

"I'd be happy to get even more stress out of your system," Castle offered. Kate playfully smacked his chest then snuggled back into his side.

Several minutes later, Castle opened his eyes and realized he'd dozed off. He raised up his head and could see that Kate was sleeping as well. He smiled. She looked even younger and if possible even more beautiful with her face relaxed in sleep. He was content having her in his arms, but he felt bad that Kate's plans had gone awry. He knew she had worked very hard to give them a memorable Valentine's Day.

Castle suddenly grinned as a plan came to mind. Maybe the romance could still be salvaged.

* * *

Kate awoke to an empty bed. She was momentarily confused, but quickly realized that Castle had to be somewhere in her apartment. She listened for a moment but couldn't hear anything. "Castle?" she called out.

"I'm in here," his voice drifted out from the bathroom. "Come on in."

Beckett threw on her little satin robe and stepped to the bathroom doorway. Shadows danced across the walls from the flickering light of close to 20 candles. Castle was dressed in his black boxers, his back to her as he lit another candle. He quickly moved on to light the 4 remaining candles.

"What is all this?" Kate asked in wonder as her eyes scanned the room. The tub was full and several rose petals were floating in the steamy water. Her wooden TV table was set up next to the tub and held a plate of cheese and crackers and a small bowl of grapes along with 2 wine glasses. The wine was cooling in a bucket next to the tub. There were more rose petals on the table and scattered among the candles. The roses that Castle had carefully rearranged sat over by the sink. Soft, soothing instrumental music wafted through the air.

A delighted smile crept across Kate's face. "Castle, this is fabulous!"

He turned to face her as he finished lighting the last candle. "I know how much you like to soak in the tub with a Richard Castle book. I just thought you might enjoy having the author instead," he said wriggling his eyebrows. Normally, Beckett would have a snide comeback, but she was totally disarmed by his romantic gesture.

"I would love that," she said softly. Her eyes shone with her love for him. She often tried to disguise her feelings, but she wanted him to see how pleased she was.

Castle reached out and caressed her cheek. Kate closed her eyes and leaned into his touch. "I can't believe you did all this for me."

"Kate, I'd do anything for you," Castle's voice was low and sincere. He leaned down and kissed her tenderly. When he pulled back there was a twinkle in his eye. "Join me in the tub, Detective?"

Castle opened the wine and poured it into the waiting glasses before stepping out of his boxers and into the tub. Kate let her robe drop to the floor and stepped into the tub settling down between Castle's legs, her back resting against his chest. Castle put his hands on her shoulders and dropped his head so he could plant soft kisses on her neck. Kate shivered from the light touch of his lips on her tender skin as goosebumps trailed along behind the kisses.

"Why don't you pull the bathtub tray closer so we can set up our picnic?" Castle suggested. Kate dragged the tray up from the end of the tub. She grabbed their wine glasses and set them on the tray then started putting together cheese and cracker sandwiches for them to munch on.

They lazily drank their wine and munched on their snacks. They resumed their normal banter and laughed as they teased each other. Whenever it seemed Castle was getting the upper hand in their back and forth, Kate would plop a grape into his mouth, and that elicited even more laughter from them.

As the food and banter both dwindled down, Castle said, "Kate, I have a gift for you." Kate stiffened slightly. She had been somewhat terrified that he might ask her to marry him. She really thought he was the one she wanted to spend the rest of her life with, but it was just too soon to get engaged. She was sure Castle would disagree. What would she say if he produced a ring? Her stomach was knotting up just thinking about it.

Castle reached down beside the tub and came up with a very thin, maybe 8 inch square package wrapped in bright red paper. A beautiful white bow adorned the package and tiny red hearts protruded from the bow and bounced on their flexible stems.

Obviously not an engagement ring then. Now that Kate was over her angst, she was extremely curious as Castle handed her the gift. She turned it over in her hands and half turned to look at him. "It feels like a book."

Castle sighed, "You know how you can find out for sure?"

Kate rolled her eyes. "It's almost too pretty to open," Kate murmured as she brushed her finger over the little hearts and watched them dance. Castle looked on in amusement knowing she would eventually open her gift. Finally, Kate tore the paper off. "It is a book. Castle?" she said not understanding. The entire cover was filled with a picture of the two of them dancing at Ryan's wedding. They were in each other's arms, and Kate's head was tilted back as she laughed – probably at something Castle had said. "What is this?"

"I wrote you a book – about us. Sometimes I really want to write our story and map out the path I want us to take so I wrote about our Valentine's Day."

Kate looked at the book spine. "Valentine's Day 2038," she read. "You wrote about our Valentine's Day 25 years from now?" Her eyes lit up. He hadn't asked her to marry him, but he made sure she knew he planned on them being together forever.

"Wait, you had Black Pawn print up a book just for me?"

"I just had a photo book made at the local drug store. It's more writing than pictures though," he said somewhat sheepishly, thinking it sounded kind of cheap now that he said it out loud. It was a simple and quick solution when he realized he didn't want to just give her sheets of computer paper.

"That's the sweetest thing I ever heard, Castle." She started to open it, but Castle put his hand on it.

"Lay back, Kate. I'll read it to you." His arms surrounded her as he held the book in front of them, and she sank into the cocoon of his arms, chest, and legs laying her head just under his chin.

Castle started reading about their Valentine's Day 25 years in the future. His voice was low and had that captivating quality that he always used when telling or reading a story. Kate could feel his words rumbling in his chest as he read. Her eyes followed along, absorbing the words and she smiled at the few pictures that were sprinkled throughout the story.

Just a few years ago she couldn't even dream of meeting her favorite author. Now they were entwined in her bath tub, and he was reading to her from a book that he had written just for her. She must be the luckiest woman on earth.

"…_Rick's heart melted just a little to think that after all these years Kate still laughed at his silly jokes_."

Kate reached up and lightly brushed her fingers along Rick's cheek, tilting her head up to kiss the underside of his jaw. He covered her hand with his then turned his head to kiss her palm. He turned his attention back to the book and resumed reading.

Kate let out a contented sigh, and marveled at how incredible this Valentine's Day had turned out.

- Fade to black -


End file.
